A group representing the construction and development industry says a more consistent supply of housing is needed in the Illawarra in order to better the lot of renters and home owners.
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According to the Housing Industry Association, new data suggests renters in NSW have seen rents drop for the first time in 12 years.
“HIA's Outlook report for NSW that was released this week shows real rental prices have been falling in over half the country’s capitals for almost five years… In 2018 Sydney joining the ranks for the first time in almost 12 years," HIA executive director NSW David Bare said last week.
“Rental prices rise when there is insufficient supply of rental accommodation to meet demand.
"HIA has long argued that the solution to this problem is to increase the supply of new homes.
“In order to see continuous improvement HIA estimates NSW will need around 50,000 houses a year to meet the demands of ongoing population growth.
“To achieve this, there needs to be a more consistent supply of new dwellings and a determined effort by the NSW state government to reduce the cost of punitive taxes and levies on housing,"
Mr Bare said it was likely there would be a flow-on effect from the shift in Sydney rental prices to the Illawarra.
However, he said a more consistent supply of housing was needed in the region to try and "minimise the boom-bust cycle", rather than resulting in rents consistently going up.
"If you don't, you end up going from meeting supply as we are probably right now - and then your approvals have dropped so much that you end up with a big gap - and suddenly you're in under-supply again, and up go rents and prices," he said.
Therefore, in the lead-up to the state election, Mr Bare, who lives in the Illawarra, urged all candidates to develop policies that will enable housing supply targets to be met, and thus better the lot of renters and home owners in the future.
